To the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces serving overseas in Afghanistan

To the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces serving in Afghanistan/À tous les Hommes et les femmes des Forces Armées Canadiennes en service en Afghanistan:

Greetings from Canada/ Bonjour du Canada!!!

I am a bilingual Anglophone from Québec city. I am half of French Canadian ancestry, as well as Irish , English and Scottish. I am well aware of our history and how controversial our mission in Afghanistan is.

However, as a former Able Seaman in the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve (Katimavik Youth Program 1984) at CFB Esquimalt, I am well aware of the advantages of intercultural understanding and racial harmony within the same country.

Our country can serve as an example of how we can fuse together British-style political institutions, French civil law, and Aboriginal spirituality, and export it to a country such as Afghanistan, which so dearly needs the hope of our example.

Let us not falter in our duty towards our values of love, honour, service and civility. Let’s not let the IEDs, the gunrunners, the corrupt politicians, drug lords, etc.. get in the way of the Beaver’s progress. The Beaver looks not for a fight, but builds his house, along with his family, with hard work and diligence, and only a very powerful explosion can destroy the house of the beaver once it has been constructed. There are no French, English, or Aboriginal Beavers, only Castor Canadensis: Canadian Beavers. That’s why it is the emblem of our land: The true north strong and free.